Katie White
Encyclopedia
Katie Rebecca White is an English musician most famous for her work with pop group The Ting Tings
. After some success with a girl group
punk
trio TKO supporting Steps and Atomic Kitten
her father David White brought in Jules De Martino
to write songs for TKO and Katie and Jules formed The Ting Tings.
, part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
, in Greater Manchester
, England with her father David White, mother Lynne and sister Helena. Katie went to Lowton High School in Lowton
, which has a large performing arts
department. When she was 12 years old Katie's grandfather Ken White won £6.6million on the National Lottery
and gave each of his three sons David, Stephen and Richard £1million each. As well as buying ponies for Katie and Helena, David used his share of the money to start a music management company. Katie has a nephew named Luke.
punk
trio TKO – short for Technical Knock Out – with two friends from Lowton school, Joanne Leeson and Emma Lally. TKO was managed by Katie's father's music management company. They had some success and supported Steps and Atomic Kitten
. TKO also appeared on ITV
's CD:UK
. In March 2001 David White brought in songwriter Jules De Martino
who wrote four songs for TKO. TKO were not able to secure a record deal but released a single on the internet.
when she was at Leeds University and he moved to Manchester. They formed a band called Dear Eskiimo (often misreported as Dead Eskimo) with a DJ friend Simon Templeman. The name was intended to be as nomadic, tribal and independent as possible. There were already several bands called Eskimo but Jules, who wrote the lyrics, wanted his songs to tell good stories as if in a letter, hence 'Dear Eskiimo' with the odd spelling of 'Eskimo" with two 'I"s to make it stand out. Their first performance was as a support between two rock bands but it went well and they were signed up by Mercury Records
at the end of 2004. Creative differences and the management style of the record label caused them to split up.
Katie and Jules started a band in 2007 with Katie on vocals, guitar, piano and bass drum and Jules on vocals, drums, bass, guitar and keyboards. They started writing songs together and doing short concerts. Katie was working in a boutique with a Chinese girl called "Ting Ting," which sounds like Mandarin Chinese for "band stand" (亭
) or "listening" and Katie used it as name for the band. The Ting Tings started by playing for private parties at the Islington Mill arts centre in Salford
and their debut album, We Started Nothing
, was released on 19 May 2008. Their follow-up album is scheduled to be released in October 2011.
The Ting Tings
The Ting Tings are an English music duo comprising Jules de Martino and Katie White . They formed in December 2007 while based at Islington Mill Studios in Salford...
. After some success with a girl group
Girl group
A girl group is a popular music act featuring several young female singers who generally harmonise together.Girl groups emerged in the late 1950s as groups of young singers teamed up with behind-the-scenes songwriters and music producers to create hit singles, often featuring glossy production...
punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
trio TKO supporting Steps and Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten were an English girl group from Liverpool, first established in 1997. Created by Andy McCluskey, the final line-up, and most commercially successful, consisted of Natasha Hamilton, Liz McClarnon, and Jenny Frost...
her father David White brought in Jules De Martino
Jules De Martino
Julian "Jules" de Martino is a British singer-songwriter, and a member of the pop duo The Ting Tings.-Babakoto:When he was 17, Jules was the drummer and song writer in a band called "Babakoto" who once played as a backing group for Bros and released a single at the end of 1987 called "Just to Get...
to write songs for TKO and Katie and Jules formed The Ting Tings.
Early life
Katie White was raised on a farm in LowtonLowton
Lowton is a village, part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is around from Leigh and south of Wigan. The settlement lies across the A580 East Lancashire Road....
, part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
The Metropolitan Borough of Wigan is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in North West England. It is named after its largest component town, Wigan and also includes the towns of Leigh, Ashton-in-Makerfield, Ince-in-Makerfield, and Hindley. The borough was formed in 1974 and is an...
, in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England with her father David White, mother Lynne and sister Helena. Katie went to Lowton High School in Lowton
Lowton
Lowton is a village, part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is around from Leigh and south of Wigan. The settlement lies across the A580 East Lancashire Road....
, which has a large performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
department. When she was 12 years old Katie's grandfather Ken White won £6.6million on the National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
and gave each of his three sons David, Stephen and Richard £1million each. As well as buying ponies for Katie and Helena, David used his share of the money to start a music management company. Katie has a nephew named Luke.
TKO
Katie started her music career aged 14 in 1997 in a girl groupGirl group
A girl group is a popular music act featuring several young female singers who generally harmonise together.Girl groups emerged in the late 1950s as groups of young singers teamed up with behind-the-scenes songwriters and music producers to create hit singles, often featuring glossy production...
punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
trio TKO – short for Technical Knock Out – with two friends from Lowton school, Joanne Leeson and Emma Lally. TKO was managed by Katie's father's music management company. They had some success and supported Steps and Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten were an English girl group from Liverpool, first established in 1997. Created by Andy McCluskey, the final line-up, and most commercially successful, consisted of Natasha Hamilton, Liz McClarnon, and Jenny Frost...
. TKO also appeared on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's CD:UK
CD:UK
CD:UK was a British music television programme. Originally run in conjunction with SMTV Live, the programme was first aired on ITV on 29 August 1998 to rival the BBC's Live & Kicking and was the replacement for The Chart Show, which had been airing on the network for nine and a half years.In...
. In March 2001 David White brought in songwriter Jules De Martino
Jules De Martino
Julian "Jules" de Martino is a British singer-songwriter, and a member of the pop duo The Ting Tings.-Babakoto:When he was 17, Jules was the drummer and song writer in a band called "Babakoto" who once played as a backing group for Bros and released a single at the end of 1987 called "Just to Get...
who wrote four songs for TKO. TKO were not able to secure a record deal but released a single on the internet.
Dear Eskiimo
Katie got back in touch with Jules De MartinoJules De Martino
Julian "Jules" de Martino is a British singer-songwriter, and a member of the pop duo The Ting Tings.-Babakoto:When he was 17, Jules was the drummer and song writer in a band called "Babakoto" who once played as a backing group for Bros and released a single at the end of 1987 called "Just to Get...
when she was at Leeds University and he moved to Manchester. They formed a band called Dear Eskiimo (often misreported as Dead Eskimo) with a DJ friend Simon Templeman. The name was intended to be as nomadic, tribal and independent as possible. There were already several bands called Eskimo but Jules, who wrote the lyrics, wanted his songs to tell good stories as if in a letter, hence 'Dear Eskiimo' with the odd spelling of 'Eskimo" with two 'I"s to make it stand out. Their first performance was as a support between two rock bands but it went well and they were signed up by Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
at the end of 2004. Creative differences and the management style of the record label caused them to split up.
The Ting Tings
Chinese pavilion
.Chinese Pavilions are covered structures without surrounding walls and are a traditional part of Chinese architecture. While often found within temples, pavilions are not exclusively religious structures...
) or "listening" and Katie used it as name for the band. The Ting Tings started by playing for private parties at the Islington Mill arts centre in Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
and their debut album, We Started Nothing
We Started Nothing
We Started Nothing is the debut album by the English New Wave duo The Ting Tings. It was released by the Columbia Label Group on 19 May 2008 in the United Kingdom. The US edition has a different cover image in several background colours....
, was released on 19 May 2008. Their follow-up album is scheduled to be released in October 2011.